reduce plastic waste – The Green Vegan Chick

Time to say goodbye to the plastic straw

You might be wondering how important it could be to switch to reusable straws, or other biodegradable options. Single-use plastic, including plastic straws, is a major worldwide issue that is continuously polluting our oceans and harming marine life. Read more regarding the truth about plastic, in my ‘Reusable Fruit and Veg Bags’ post here.

There is no such thing as ‘away‘. When we throw anything away it must go somewhere

Annie Leonard

vegan coffee smoothie recipe
in a glass jar with a Stream Straws smoothie straight straw

switch to a reusable glass straw

I’ve been using my envirosax reusable shopping bags for years and recently switched to using Freshbag’s reusable fruit and veggie bags. It was only natural for my green vegan journey to evolve to include reusable straws.

Earlier this year, I started researching the available reusable straw product options, and found Stream Straws. They’re a local company who hand make durable, reusable, borosilicate glass straws which come with a lifetime guarantee against breakage by regular use.

Our mission is simple; to reduce the amount of plastic straws used daily across the globe and to replace them with a reusable, eco-friendly alternative.

streamstraws

Stream Straws are currently being served at The Wellness Warehouse Cafe’s, Plant cafe, and many more restaurants and cafe’s. If these straws can survive repeated use in a cafe, then in my opinion, they are worth it. I purchased my straw and sleeve combo, which includes a Smoothie Straight Straw, a Protective Hemp Sleeve, and a Cleaning Brush. The brush is an awesome addition, as they would otherwise be impossible to clean!

vegan pomegranate smoothie
in a glass jar with a Stream Straws smoothie straight straw

Where to buy

You can buy reusable glass straw’s from Stream Straws via their website, at Organic Living, Wellness Warehouse, and online at Faithful to Nature. Have a look at their stockists page for a more detailed list.

Do you have a reusable glass straw? Do you have any other ways that I can reduce my plastic waste? I’d love to hear from you in a comment below. If you’d like to see more of the green vegan lifestyle products I have found, have a look here. And to see what else I have found browse my Directory. New products posted regularly.

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© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

Say no thanks to single use fruit and veggie plastic bags and switch to reusable bags.

I’ve been trying to come up with more ways to integrate reusable items into my daily routine. That way I can reduce the amount of plastic waste I generate. I’ve been using my envirosax reusable shopping bags for longer than I’ve been vegan (since 2011). Using them has become a part of my everyday shopping habits. There are 3 in my handbag so I have them with me all the time and use them everywhere. Isn’t it horrible that when you go to buy loose fruit and veg, you get those thin single use plastic bags. If I am not mistaken, they can’t be recycled and will most certainly end up in a landfill or even in the ocean. We have developed a “disposable” lifestyle and single use plastic has created a rubbish problem that now pollutes every corner of the world.

50% of plastic is used once then thrown away.
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The truth about plastic

The truly scary thing is that all the plastic ever created still exists. This is because plastic can’t biodegrade; it photo degrades. This means it breaks down into smaller pieces, which is still plastic. When plastic waste is collected and transported to a landfill site, and even when it is in a landfill already, there is always a risk that the light weight plastic waste will blow away and end up in trees, our rivers and even our oceans. Currently there is so much plastic waste in the ocean that in some places there is more tiny plastic particles than plankton. And we are to blame as it is estimated that approximately 80% of the garbage in our oceans comes from land, from us.

Today we use plastic, a product designed to last forever, for products designed to last minutes.
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Small change – big impact

As consumers we must take matters into our own hands. We must refuse single use plastic. That way shops will have to provide us with reusable alternatives. I knew there had to already be an alternative to these single use bags and was so happy to find quite a few. I am the proud owner of locally produced Freshbag reusable bags made from a light-weight nylon mesh. They are strong, fold up real small, are easy to use and super cute. Now I pop them in my handbag and use them every time I buy loose fruit and veg. I have noticed that the price sticker tends to fall off of the fabric so I tend to just wrap the barcode sticker around the ribbon drawstring.

Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can change the world.

Howard Zinn

Where to buy?

I bought mine directly from Freshbag. Have a look at the order page on their website. You can also buy them from Organic Living, and online on Faithful to Nature.

Do you use something similar? If you have any other ways Ican reduce my plastic waste I’d love to hear from you in a comment below. If you’d like to see more of the green vegan lifestyle products I have found, have a look here. And to see what else I have found browse my Directory. New products posted regularly.

Let’s get Social!

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.